I ask my students to translate any selection (even if it’s in their mother tongue) into their own every day vernacular, so as to have as personal a relationship to the text as possible. I’m pretty pleased with my translation of Chausson’s Le Charme:

So I’m getting a duo recital ready with a longtime friend and student Diane–and I’ve decided to prepare the recital with exactly the same system that I ask my students to prepare the selections they work on for class or lessons.

Because I’m doing a set of three French selections and it’s been a LONG time since I’ve sung in French–I decided to use the following “tools” put out by The Vocal Library, which I have been telling my students about for a couple of years–but have never sat down to use myself.

Thanks to student Joanne, who asked for online help in learning IPA, or the International Phonetics Alphabet– a crucial tool in being able to accurately (and therefore confidently!) pronounce text in any language for singing or otherwise. I highly recommend that you check out the following links–know that any time invested in learning this skill will pay off in a big way!